


Baby Sakamoto

by vivvav



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: F/M, Shizuka Sakamoto, The AFR Universe, Yoshio Sakamoto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2019-01-05 21:19:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12197637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivvav/pseuds/vivvav
Summary: It's been eight years since the end of the Phantom Thieves, and life moves on. Adolescents become adults, finishing college, getting jobs, and making new lives for themselves. And in the case of Ryuji and Hifumi, creating a brand new life altogether.





	Baby Sakamoto

It was a late August night in the University of Tokyo Hospital. After half a day’s worth of screaming, pushing, and lots of deep breaths, Hifumi Sakamoto had given birth to her first child, a healthy baby boy named Yoshio. At the moment, she was holding the infant out to his very excitable and very nervous father.

“Aw man,” Ryuji said, “I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“What are you talking about?” Hifumi’s voice was still a little raspy from all the yelling she’d done throughout the day, but she managed to keep the composure of a woman who wasn’t completely exhausted from the ravages of childbirth. “He’s your son. You have to hold him.”

“But what if I break him!?”

“I have faith that you won’t.” It took all of Hifumi’s willpower not to laugh. She feared it would have been too painful in her current condition.

“If you say so…” With more care than he’d ever exhibited in his life, Ryuji gingerly took the infant swaddled in a yellow blanket into his arms. He looked upon the soft, delicate, chubby face of his sleeping progeny and became awash in a sea of conflicting emotions. Joy at having a son of his own, finally having the family he’d always dreamed of. Pride in his wife for how strong she was to bring their child into the world. Fear of doing something to hurt Yoshio, either now or in the future. Determination to be the best dad he could be, the complete opposite of his own father, taking cues from people like Hifumi’s father and Sojiro. And most of all, sheer, overwhelming love. More than ever before in his life, Ryuji wanted to yell. To scream to the heavens about how incredible this was, about how his dreams were coming true, about how amazing his newborn son was. But yelling would mean waking the little guy. And he was so peaceful right now, asleep, unaware of what a momentous occasion his birth was. And so, with surprising ease, Ryuji managed to condense all of his emotions into four whispered words:

“This is for real…”

“May I?”

Ryuji and Hifumi were not alone in the hospital room. Ryuji’s mother and Hifumi’s parents were present as well. In addition, all of Ryuji and Hifumi’s friends were sitting in the waiting room. Before letting the Phantom Thieves introduce the baby to the concept of ruckus, the new parents had decided to let Yoshio’s grandparents be the first ones to meet him. At the moment, Shizuka Sakamoto was holding her arms out, her desire-filled eyes locked on her grandson.

“Sure thing, Mom.” Ryuji handed Yoshio to Shizuka. “This is Grandma, Yoshio. She’s gonna give you more love than you know what to do with.”

“Oh, Ryuji, it’s just like when you were born! Although you didn’t take nearly as long to come out.” Shizuka looked down at the baby and spoke in a faux-angry tone. “You made things very hard for your mother, you little trouble-maker!”

“It wasn’t that bad” Hifumi said.

“Oh yeah?” Ryuji rolled up his sleeve to show a bruise from where Hifumi had repeatedly punched him. “What about ‘you yellow-haired beast, I never should have played shogi with you, what have you done to me’?”

“You cannot expect me to be held accountable for anything I said or did while giving birth to our child.”

“A man must forgive his wife’s indiscretions during pregnancy, Ryuji.” Iwao Togo pushed his wheelchair forward, rolling up to the bedside. “Pain has a funny way of making us our worst selves.”

“Iwao, would you care to hold your grandson?” Shizuka held out Yoshio to the older man.

“Just try and stop me.” Iwao took Yoshio, giving the child one of those mercurial grins Ryuji had become far too used to seeing. “Alright sonny boy, enjoy your rest while you can. The second you begin to develop motor skills, it’s straight to shogi training!”

“Hey! You better not be bullyin’ my kid, old man!” Ryuji crossed his arms and looked down at his father-in-law, grinning the whole time.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if this one’s got the knack for shogi.” Iwao looked curiously at his grandson, scanning his face closely. “I’m getting a bit of a ‘baseball player’ vibe from him.” As the old man admired the babe in his arms, tears began to form in his eyes.

“Are you alright, Pops?” Ryuji’s grin disappeared. “Is somethin’ wrong?”

“No, just the opposite.” Iwao sniffled and wiped his eyes with his forearm. “Everything is wonderful! I never imagined I would live to see a grandchild!”

“Yes, my love, this is a wonderful day for us all.” Mitsuyo Togo reached down and took Yoshio from her husband. “But let’s not get the baby wet.”

“Mother, you don’t need to cook up a pretense to hold Yoshio.” Hifumi rolled her eyes. “Just ask normally.”

“Well excuse me if I’m feeling left out being the last person in the room who gets to hold him.” Mitsyuo craned her neck down to look at the baby, and her tone did a complete 180 as she began cooing. “Hewwo thewe! I’m youw Gwanny Mitsuyo! Can you say ‘Gwanny’?”

“Mother, it will be at least half a year until he begins even the most basic of vocalizations.”

“I know that!” Mitsuyo huffed, gently bouncing the sleeping infant in her arms. “Don’t worry, Yoshio. We’ll have the last laugh. With Granny’s help, you’ll be the most famous and beloved baseball player in all of Japan!”

“Mother!”

“What? Only your father is allowed to tell jokes?” Mitsyuo walked over to the bed and returned Yoshio to Hifumi. “Here. Maybe the overwhelming feelings of a mother’s love will do something to curb that attitude of yours.”

Hifumi was about to rebuke her mother’s comments, but a loud and prolonged yawn elected to leave her throat first.

“Alright, grandpeople. Visitin’ time’s over.” Ryuji opened the door to the hallway and held it in place. “Hifumi’s been through a lot and needs her sleep. You don’t gotta go home, but you can’t stay here.”

“Of course.” Shizuka hugged Ryuji. “I’ll see you when you get home dear.”

“You’ll be back tomorrow, won’t you?”

“Yup!” Shizuka left the room with a bounce in her step.

“Congratulations, young man.” Iwao shook Ryuji’s hand. “I can’t think of two better parents for that child to be raised by.”

“Thanks, Pops.”

“Make sure you get some rest yourself.” Mitsuyo gave Ryuji a peck on the cheek. “Trust me, soon enough, sleep will be the only thing you wish for.”

“Uh… Alright. Thanks, Ma.”

“Bye, Hifumi! Bye, Yoshio!” Mitsuyo blew a kiss to her already-sleeping daughter and grandson as she pushed her husband out the door.

Everything quiet for the first time in hours, Ryuji shut the door and grabbed a chair, placing it right next to the bed. He sat down, leaning forward, trying to get as close to Hifumi and Yoshio without disturbing them. He couldn’t stop himself from getting the biggest, dumbest grin he’d ever had in his entire life. He couldn’t imagine anything better than what he was seeing in the moment.

* * *

“It’s about time we got to meet him” Futaba said. “We sat around for hours and hours yesterday only to be sent back home!”

“Try to be understanding, Futaba-Chan” Haru said. “Hifumi-Chan needed her sleep. Childbirth is no easy task.”

“I know that! I just hate having my time wasted! Do you know how much grinding I could’ve done!?”

“You were on your laptop the entire time we sat in the waiting room” Yusuke said.

“Yeah! On crappy hospital wi-fi! That doesn’t count, Inari!”

“Well,” Sojiro said, “we’re meeting the baby now, so all of you be on your best behavior.”

“You need not worry about us, Boss” Yusuke said. “Nobody here would ever be so untoward as to act rambunctious around a newborn infant.”

“I’m not so sure about that…” Sojiro looked at Ann with suspicion.

“We’re gonna see a baby!” Ann was manic with glee. “I can’t wait to hold his squishy little body! And pinch his chubby little cheeks! And count all his little fingers and toes!”

“There are ten of each” Ren said.

“Well, I’m gonna check just to make sure!”

“I hardly think that’s necessary, Ann” Makoto said. “I’m certain if there were any defects Ryuji would have informed us of-“

“I’M. GONNA. CHECK.” Ann gave Makoto a crazed grin not unlike that of a man she’d held a hostage negotiation with the week before. Makoto began to wonder if perhaps she should have brought her taser to the hospital.

“Yo!” Ryuji poked his head outside Hifumi’s room, waving to the group. “Over here!”

Ryuji held the door open as the others filed into the room one by one. They all coalesced in a small crowd near the room’s entrance, keeping some space between themselves and Hifumi. Hifumi looked at them all and chuckled.

“Hello, everyone.” Hifumi beckoned for them to come closer. “Come meet Yoshio.”

Futaba shrieked as Ann bowled past her, almost knocking her over. The young actress had crossed the room faster than anybody believed possible, and for a brief moment many present could not help but wonder if anime flash steps were possible in real life. Ann leaned over the bed, her face just inches from Hifumi and Yoshio, her eyes and smile as wide as humanly possible.

“Baaaaaaabyyyyyy…”

Hifumi snickered, having long been prepared for this. During her pregnancy, Ann had been the most supportive and excited of all their friends. The day after Hifumi and Ryuji had made the announcement, Ann showed up at their house with an entire wardrobe’s worth of maternity clothing. She also seemed to have memorized the details of a few hundred eateries and markets in Tokyo to be prepared for any kind of craving Hifumi might have, which came in handy on one memorable evening when the expectant mother had an ungodly desire for a mountainous quantity of poutine.

“Hello, Ann.” Hifumi held Yoshio out to Ann. “Would you like to hold him?”

“Yesyesyesyesyesyes!” Ann grabbed Yoshio and propped up one of his hands. She started touching his fingers one by one. “One… two… three… four… five…”

“Uh…” Ryuji turned to Ren. “What is she doin’?”

“Just go with it” Ren said.

“…ten!” Ann let go of the other arm and let out a giggle. “He’s so cute! I could just eat him up!” Ann looked down at Hifumi and grinned. “He must get that from his mom! There’s no way Ryuji was this cute as a baby!”

“Oh, that’s not true at all” Hifumi protested. “Ryuji is VERY cute in his baby pictures. There’s one I’m particularly fond of where he has baby food smeared all over his face, and there are two lines on his forehead that look like big angry eyebrows.“

“C’mon, don’t tell ‘em about that!” Ryuji started to blush. “It’s embarassin’!”

“Where are these pictures!?” Futaba whipped out her phone. “I’m not seeing anything on Ryuji’s mom’s social media! Are they on the cloud!?”

“Ryuji’s mother has an album of them in our home” Hifumi said.

“An album!? The physical kind!?” Futaba groaned. “I can’t hack that!”

“Ann, are you finished?” Yusuke held out his arms. “I would like to hold Yoshio when you are done.”

“But he likes me!” Ann turned away from Yusuke. “You can’t just take him away from his favorite aunt!”

“Ann, set a good example for the baby” Ren said. “Share.”

“Fine…” Ann reluctantly handed Yoshio to Yusuke.

“Hello there.” The way Yusuke looked at Yoshio made it unclear if he expected a response or not. He seemed to be analyzing the child the way he did paintings in museums. After an extended moment of silence, he looked up at Ryuji. “He is very soft.”

“Don’t go pokin’ him or nothin’.” Ryuji seemed uncomfortable with Yusuke holding his baby.

“Perish the thought. I am aware that his skull is undeveloped. At this time, he is like human clay.” Yusuke’s eyes widened all of a sudden and he handed the baby to Sojiro.

“Whoa!” Sojiro had to rush not to drop Yoshio. “What are you doing!?”

Yusuke did not answer. He created a frame with his fingers, first focusing on Hifumi, then Ryuji, then Yoshio. He turned on his heel and made a beeline for the door.

“Where are you goin’!?” Ryuji asked.

“I must purchase some clay!” Yusuke vanished into the hallway.

“Should we go after him?” Makoto asked.

“I don’t think there’d be a point to it” Ren said.

“Heh.” Sojiro looked into Yoshio’s eyes. “Cute little guy.”

“I imagine that as a father yourself, you must be feeling deja vu, yes, Sakura-San?” Hifumi smiled at the cafe owner. She didn’t spend a lot of time with him, but Ryuji never had anything bad to say about the man.

“Nope.” Sojiro tilted his head towards Ren and Futaba. “These knuckleheads were already walking, talking brats when they came into my life. Honestly, I think I dodged a bullet. I would’ve been terrible at taking care of a baby.”

“I’m sure you would’ve been fine” Ren said. “You’re a lot more nurturing than the tough guy manly-man you pretend to be.”

“Can it, you no-good punk.”

"I'm 25 and work for the government."

"That doesn't mean you're not a no-good punk."

“It’s my turn hold the baby!” Futaba held her hands up to Sojiro.

“Are you sure?” Sojiro gave Futaba an uneasy look.

“I won’t drop him!” Futaba stomped her foot. “Come on, Sojiro! Hand him over!”

Sojiro looked at Hifumi, who nodded.

“Alright then… Just be careful.” Sojiro passed Yoshio to Futaba.

“Alright!” Futaba grinned at the baby in her arms and looked at Ren. “Hey, what if I did that Lion King thing? You know, ‘It's the circle of liiiiiiife-‘“

“Your turn’s up.” Ryuji tore Yoshio away from Futaba.

“I was just kidding!” Futaba reached for the baby. “I know he can’t support his head! I wasn’t actually gonna do it!”

“Your turn’s still up.” Ryuji looked around the room. “Alright, who’s next?”

“I WANNA HOLD HIM!”

Everybody looked to the window to see Morgana outside, perched on the ledge.

“COME ON GUYS, LET ME IN!”

“What’s he saying?” Hifumi asked.

“He wants to be let in” Ren replied.

“Oh, we can’t do that.” Truthfully, Hifumi did not care for Morgana. She knew that he was a member of Ryuji’s friend circle, but every time they got in a room it seemed like the cat needlessly antagonized her husband to no end. “What if Yoshio’s allergic?”

“That’s preposterous!” Morgana pressed his paws to the window. “Why does everyone keep saying that about me!? The hospital wouldn’t let me in either because ‘some patients might be allergic’! I am nothing but beneficial to the health of everyone around me!”

“Dude, you can’t even hold him!” Ryuji passed the baby off to Haru. “You don’t have hands!”

“I have very strong paws!”

“Mona, no!”

“He is adorable!” Haru held Yoshio close to her face. She gasped as he reached out and grabbed some of her hair.

“He touched you! Lucky!” Ann looked at Haru jealously.

“I think he thinks you’re a teddy bear” Ren said.

“Perhaps!” Haru giggled. “Or maybe he just likes how soft my hair is!”

“Prob’ly.” Ryuji held his hands up to the top of his head, making a fluffing motion. “It’s like you got a big ol’ pillow on your head.”

“Well, I’m certain that your hair will be lovely when it grows in more!” Haru gently pried Yoshio’s fingers open and turned to Ryuji. “I hope you aren’t disappointed that it’s not blond like yours, Ryuji-Kun.”

“Um…” Hifumi looked at Ryuji in confusion. “Does she not know?”

“C’mon Haru,” Ryuji sighed, “we’ve been over this.”

“Oh yes! Your hair is not actually that color!” Haru chuckled. “I suppose I’m so used to seeing Ann-Chan’s naturally blonde hair that I forget yours isn’t natural as well!”

“Alright, let’s hurry this up.” Ren gave a look to the door Yusuke had left open. “I’m pretty sure some of the nurses are getting mad at us for all the noise we’re making.”

“Of course! We don’t wish to be a disruption!” Haru handed Yoshio to Ren. “Here you go, Ren-Kun!”

“Alright, now we’re gettin’ to the main event!” Ryuji leaned down and whispered into Yoshio’s ear. “This is your Uncle Ren.”

“‘Uncle’?” Ren smirked at Ryuji. “You’re making me sound like an old man.”

“I hope that doesn’t make me ‘Auntie Makoto’.” Makoto ran her fingers through her hair. “I haven’t started going grey yet.”

“Actually…” Ryuji sat down at the foot of Hifumi’s bed, turning to his wife. “Should we ask ‘em?”

“I was hoping to wait until we were in private…” Hifumi looked at Ren and Makoto. “But I know how busy your schedules are, and you’re both here now…”

“Do you need us to leave?” Sojiro asked.

“What!? Leave the room with the baby in it!?” Ann frowned so hard it seemed like the corners of her mouth were going to droop off her face. “Why!?”

“I believe Hifumi-Chan and Ryuji-Kun are going to ask Ren-Kun and Mako-Chan to be the godparents” Haru said.

“Oh my!” Makoto looked at Haru, then back to Hifumi and Ryuji. “Is this true?”

“Well, now that it’s out in the open like this, I suppose there’s no point in denying it” Hifumi said.

“Wow… That’s-” Ren was cut off by Yoshio yawning. He looked down to see the baby falling asleep in his arms. “Wow…”

“So?” Ryuji grinned at his best friend. “Whaddya say?”

“Of course.” Ren smiled at the new parents. “We’d be honored.”

“Wait a second!” Makoto frantically looked back and forth between Ren and the Sakamotos. “Shouldn’t we talk about this first!? Obviously, we’re flattered, but a child is a huge responsibility! Ren and I have discussed having children, of course, especially over the past nine months, but with the way our careers and goals are, we-“

“Makoto, relax. We’re not taking Yoshio from them now” Ren said. “They’re only asking us to be the godparents.”

“Yeah,” Ryuji said, “it’s just in case somethin’ happens to us. We got Mom livin’ with us now, and she’s gonna help out once I go back to work, but I can’t ask her to raise another kid all by herself if somethin’ bad goes down.”

“Yes, and I understand that.” Makoto fiddled with her headband. “And it’s not that I don’t want to, but I’m just not sure we’d be ready for the commitment on-“

“Makoto, here.” Ren handed the baby to his worrisome girlfriend. Makoto took Yoshio and stared at him silently, a blank expression on her face. Everybody watched as over the next minute, her face grew gradually redder and redder.

“Cheater” she whispered.

“That’s a yes" Ren said.

“Are you guys sure about this?” Futaba asked. “You’ve seen how tall Makoto’s been getting, right? What if she needs to eat your baby to sustain her growth?”

“Alright, we’re done here.” Sojiro grabbed Futaba’s shoulders and started pushing her towards the door.

“Sojiro! Hey! What are you doing!?”

“We’ve taken up enough of their time. Let’s get something to eat.” Sojiro looked back as he forced Futaba out of the room. “Congratulations, you two. Let me know if you need anything.”

“And me as well!” Haru headed for the hallway, dragging a desperate Ann behind her by the wrist. “I have an acquaintance who can get you milk at a discount price if you buy in bulk!”

“No! Wait! I don’t wanna go yet!” Ann clung to the doorframe with her one free arm, unable to escape Haru’s viselike grip. “I call first dibs on babysitting duty! And second dibs!” Ann was finally pulled away from the door. “And third through a hundredth!”

“We should get going too.” Makoto gave Yoshio to Hifumi. “We have a lunch meeting with Governor Yoshida.”

“I thought you had the day off” Ryuji said.

“Yeah, he says it’s casual” Ren said. “I’m pretty sure he wants to get me to run for the Diet, though.”

“What makes you say that?” Hifumi asked.

“A file I found in his office labelled ‘Ren-Kun Election Plan’.” Ren smirked. “I haven’t read it. Didn’t want to steal his thunder.”

“Well, good luck!”

“Thanks.” Ren stood up and walked out the door with Makoto. “Bye, Ryuji. Bye, Hifumi.”

“Farewell, Yoshio!” Makoto added.

“Right. We’re going to be dealing with another Sakamoto now.” Ren's whistle could be heard as they turned the corner. “That’ll be interesting.”

Ryuji and Hifumi looked to the window, where Morgana was glaring at them. The two glared back, and after a very angry staring contest, he huffed and jumped down to windowsills unbeknownst to them.

“Hey.” Ryuji shuffled to the head of the bed. “Make some room.”

Hifumi scooched over, creating some space for Ryuji on the tiny hospital mattress. He laid back, yawning as his head hit one of the pillows.

“You don’t have to stick around” Hifumi said. “I can understand if you’d like to go home for a bit.”

“And ditch you two?” Ryuji kissed the tips of his fingers and pressed them against Hifumi’s cheeks. “No way. I’m a dad now. I’m gonna be with you guys all the time.”

“What about work?” Hifumi caressed Yoshio’s cheek. “You only have so many vacation days.”

“That don't count! The whole reason I’m workin’ is for my family. You guys’re my life now.”

“And you’re ok with that? You don’t feel like you’ve lost out on any opportunities?”

“No way.” Ryuji rolled over onto his side, propping up his head with his elbow. “You don’t feel that way, do ya?”

“Of course not!” Hifumi frowned. “I suppose I’m just a bit overwhelmed is all. Now that he’s here, I’m realizing just how much Yoshio’s going to depend on us for everything.”

“Yeah, but we’re ready.” Ryuji put his hand on Hifumi’s shoulder. “I’m makin’ good money doin’ security, and you’re still doin’ great at shogi, and we got all the stuff we need and we got Mom helpin’ us. We prepared for this.”

“How are you so confident right now?” Hifumi laughed nervously. “You’ve been so stressed for the past nine months, and all of a sudden you’re Mr. Cool?”

“Hey, I’m always Mr. Cool.” Ryuji winced as Hifumi poked him in the forehead. “Look, I dunno. It’s just… you’re here, and I’m here, and Yoshio came out healthy and all. I feel like we can do this.”

“Yes, you’re right.” Hifumi took Ryuji’s hand. “Neither of us is going anywhere. You believe in me, and I believe in you. Yoshio’s going to have the best parents in the world.”

“Totally.” Ryuji yawned and slung his arm over Hifumi and Yoshio, closing his eyes.

“Totally.” Hifumi kissed Ryuji’s cheek.

** Art by [Hureno](http://hurenoshmureno.tumblr.com) **

**Author's Note:**

> You were probably expecting me to continue one of the two lingering AU stories I've got going on right now. So was I. But then Hureno drew that pic based on some conversations we're having and I just wanted to do something fluffy and fun after the writing marathon that was Makoto Week. I'm focusing on moving right now, but Phantom Queen and Evil Queen will return next month.
> 
> Update: This story's been changed to use Joker's canon name.


End file.
